Briefs from Svalbardposten for the week of March 7, 2017

Alternative ‘doomsday vault’ to store data on film in Mine 3
Sometime in the future, when the amount of “fake news” has become so large and complex the truth is unclear, one may be able to enter a new type of “doomsday vault’ in Mine 3 and check the facts.” Piql AS has worked with Store Norske for the past year to establish the Arctic World Archive, where data will be stored on high-resolution film. “Svalbard is a unique area with the qualities we need,” said Rune Bjerkestrand, Piql’s administrative director. “Today we are experiencing an increasingly troubled world and we also see that databases are threatened by cyber attacks. It can be very good at such a time to have an archive that exists isolated in a cold archive in a part of the world where there also is no military activity.” He said unlike other data mediums, the film won’t become obsolete because it can in theory be read with a magnifying glass. Also, he said there may be more potential “depositors” who access the data more frequently than the seed vault.

Greenlandlic trawler detained for illegal fishing near Ny-Ålesund
A Greenlandic fishing boat was detained in Kongsfjorden on suspicion of illegal trawling near Ny-Ålesund on Thursday night, according to The Governor of Svalbard. Officials from the governor’s office and two Norwegian Coast Guard inspectors flew to the scene in one of the governor’s rescue helicopters after being notified about the vessel by Kings Bay AS, which is responsible for management of the research settlement. Fishing is banned in the area and numerous scientific measuring devices are deployed in the waters there. The Coast Guard’s K/V Svalbard responded subsequently and the case in now under criminal investigation.

Police looking for tips after car stolen, found a short distance away
A Toyota passenger car stolen from Vei 232 on Sunday morning was found near the water reservoir in Gruvedalen that afternoon, according to The Governor of Svalbard. The car’s owner original thought the vehicle was borrowed with permission, but that turned out not to be the case. Police are seeking tips in the matter.